Ayub 26:8

26:8 He locks the waters in his clouds,

and the clouds do not burst with the weight of them.

Ayub 36:29

36:29 Who can understand the spreading of the clouds,

the thunderings of his pavilion? ¹ 

Ayub 35:5

35:5 Gaze at the heavens and see;

consider the clouds, which are higher than you! ² 

Ayub 38:9

38:9 when I made ³  the storm clouds its garment,

and thick darkness its swaddling band, ⁴ 

Ayub 20:6

20:6 Even though his stature ⁵  reaches to the heavens

and his head touches the clouds,

Ayub 37:11

37:11 He loads the clouds with moisture; ⁶ 

he scatters his lightning through the clouds.

Ayub 26:9

26:9 He conceals ⁷  the face of the full moon, ⁸ 

shrouding it with his clouds.

Ayub 30:15

30:15 Terrors are turned loose ⁹  on me;

they drive away ¹⁰  my honor like the wind,

and like a cloud my deliverance has passed away.

Ayub 22:14

22:14 Thick clouds are a veil for him, so he does not see us, ¹¹ 

as he goes back and forth

in the vault ¹²  of heaven.’ ¹³ 

Ayub 38:37

38:37 Who by wisdom can count the clouds,

and who can tip over ¹⁴  the water jars of heaven,

Ayub 3:5

3:5 Let darkness and the deepest

shadow ¹⁵  claim it; ¹⁶ 

let a cloud settle on it;

let whatever blackens the day ¹⁷  terrify it!

Ayub 7:9

7:9 As ¹⁸  a cloud is dispersed and then disappears, ¹⁹ 

so the one who goes down to the grave ²⁰ 

does not come up again. ²¹ 

Ayub 22:13

22:13 But you have said, ‘What does God know?

Does he judge through such deep darkness? ²² 

Ayub 38:34

38:34 Can you raise your voice to the clouds

so that a flood of water covers you? ²³ 

Ayub 26:7

26:7 He spreads out the northern skies ²⁴  over empty space; ²⁵ 

he suspends the earth on nothing. ²⁶ 

Ayub 37:22

37:22 From the north he comes in golden splendor; ²⁷ 

around God is awesome majesty.

Ayub 37:15-16

37:15 Do you know how God commands them, ²⁸ 

how he makes lightning flash in his storm cloud? ²⁹ 

37:16 Do you know about the balancing ³⁰  of the clouds,

that wondrous activity of him who is perfect in knowledge?

Ayub 36:28

36:28 which the clouds pour down

and shower on humankind abundantly.

Ayub 38:36

38:36 Who has put wisdom in the heart, ³¹ 

or has imparted understanding to the mind?

Ayub 36:27

36:27 He draws up drops of water;

they distill ³²  the rain into its mist, ³³ 

Ayub 37:18

37:18 will you, with him, spread out ³⁴  the clouds,

solid as a mirror of molten metal?

Ayub 37:21

37:21 But now, the sun ³⁵  cannot be looked at ³⁶  –

it is bright in the skies –

after a wind passed and swept the clouds away. ³⁷ 

Ayub 38:8

38:8 “Who shut up ³⁸  the sea with doors

when it burst forth, ³⁹  coming out of the womb,

Ayub 37:12

37:12 The clouds ⁴⁰  go round in circles,

wheeling about according to his plans,

to carry out ⁴¹  all that he commands them

over the face of the whole inhabited world.

[36:29]  ¹ tn Heb “his booth.”

[35:5]  ² tn The preposition is taken here as a comparative min (מִן). The line could also read “that are high above you.” This idea has appeared in the speech of Eliphaz (22:12), Zophar (11:7ff.), and even Job (9:8ff.).

[38:9]  ³ tn The temporal clause here uses the infinitive from שִׂים (sim, “to place; to put; to make”). It underscores the sovereign placing of things.

[38:9]  ⁴ tn This noun is found only here. The verb is in Ezek 16:4, and a related noun is in Ezek 30:21.

[20:6]  ⁵ tn The word שִׂיא (si’) has been connected with the verb נָשָׂא (nasa’, “to lift up”), and so interpreted here as “pride.” The form is parallel to “head” in the next part, and so here it refers to his stature, the part that rises up and is crowned. But the verse does describe the pride of such a person, with his head in the heavens.

[37:11]  ⁶ tn The word “moisture” is drawn from רִי (ri) as a contraction for רְוִי (rÿvi). Others emended the text to get “hail” (NAB) or “lightning,” or even “the Creator.” For these, see the various commentaries. There is no reason to change the reading of the MT when it makes perfectly good sense.

[26:9]  ⁷ tn The verb means “to hold; to seize,” here in the sense of shutting up, enshrouding, or concealing.

[26:9]  ⁸ tc The MT has כִסֵּה (khisseh), which is a problematic vocalization. Most certainly כֵּסֶה (keseh), alternative for כֶּסֶא (kese’, “full moon”) is intended here. The MT is close to the form of “throne,” which would be כִּסֵּא (kisse’, cf. NLT “he shrouds his throne with his clouds”). But here God is covering the face of the moon by hiding it behind clouds.

[30:15]  ⁹ tn The passive singular verb (Hophal) is used with a plural subject (see GKC 388 §121.b).

[30:15]  ¹⁰ tc This translation assumes that “terrors” (in the plural) is the subject. Others emend the text in accordance with the LXX, which has, “my hope is gone like the wind.”

[22:14]  ¹¹ tn Heb “and he does not see.” The implied object is “us.”

[22:14]  ¹² sn The word is “circle; dome”; here it is the dome that covers the earth, beyond which God sits enthroned. A. B. Davidson (Job, 165) suggests “on the arch of heaven” that covers the earth.

[22:14]  ¹³ sn The idea suggested here is that God is not only far off, but he is unconcerned as he strolls around heaven – this is what Eliphaz says Job means.

[38:37]  ¹⁴ tn The word actually means “to cause to lie down.”

[3:5]  ¹⁵ sn The translation of צַלְמָוֶת (tsalmavet, “shadow of death”) has been traditionally understood to indicate a dark, death shadow (supported in the LXX), but many scholars think it may not represent the best etymological analysis of the word. The word may be connected to an Arabic word which means “to be dark,” and an Akkadian word meaning “black.” It would then have to be repointed throughout its uses to צַלְמוּת (tsalmut) forming an abstract ending. It would then simply mean “darkness” rather than “shadow of death.” Or the word can be understood as an idiomatic expression meaning “gloom” that is deeper than חֹשֶׁךְ (khoshekh; see HALOT 1029 s.v. צַלְמָוֶת). Since “darkness” has already been used in the line, the two together could possibly form a nominal hendiadys: “Let the deepest darkness….” There is a significant amount of literature on this; one may begin with W. L. Michel, “SLMWT, ‘Deep Darkness’ or ‘Shadow of Death’?” BR 29 (1984): 5-20.

[3:5]  ¹⁶ tn The verb is גָּאַל (ga’al, “redeem, claim”). Some have suggested that the verb is actually the homonym “pollute.” This is the reading in the Targum, Syriac, Vulgate, and Rashi, who quotes from Mal 1:7,12. See A. R. Johnson, “The Primary Meaning of ga’al,” VTSup 1 (1953): 67-77.

[3:5]  ¹⁷ tn The expression “the blackness of the day” (כִּמְרִירֵי יוֹם, kimrire yom) probably means everything that makes the day black, such as supernatural events like eclipses. Job wishes that all ominous darknesses would terrify that day. It comes from the word כָּמַר (kamar, “to be black”), related to Akkadian kamaru (“to overshadow, darken”). The versions seem to have ignored the first letter and connected the word to מָרַר (marar, “be bitter”).

[7:9]  ¹⁸ tn The comparison is implied; “as” is therefore supplied in the translation.

[7:9]  ¹⁹ tn The two verbs כָּלַה (kalah) and הָלַךְ (halakh) mean “to come to an end” and “to go” respectively. The picture is of the cloud that breaks up, comes to an end, is dispersed so that it is no longer a cloud; it then fades away or vanishes. This line forms a good simile for the situation of a man who comes to his end and disappears.

[7:9]  ²⁰ tn The noun שְׁאוֹל (shÿ’ol) can mean “the grave,” “death,” or “Sheol” – the realm of departed spirits. In Job this is a land from which there is no return (10:21 and here). It is a place of darkness and gloom (10:21-22), a place where the dead lie hidden (14:13); as a place appointed for all no matter what their standing on earth might have been (30:23). In each case the precise meaning has to be determined. Here the grave makes the most sense, for Job is simply talking about death.

[7:9]  ²¹ sn It is not correct to try to draw theological implications from this statement or the preceding verse (Rashi said Job was denying the resurrection). Job is simply stating that when people die they are gone – they do not return to this present life on earth. Most commentators and theologians believe that theological knowledge was very limited at such an early stage, so they would not think it possible for Job to have bodily resurrection in view. (See notes on ch. 14 and 19:25-27.)

[22:13]  ²² sn Eliphaz is giving to Job the thoughts and words of the pagans, for they say, “How does God know, and is there knowledge in the Most High?” (see Ps 73:11; 94:11).

[38:34]  ²³ tc The LXX has “answer you,” and some editors have adopted this. However, the reading of the MT makes better sense in the verse.

[26:7]  ²⁴ sn The Hebrew word is צָפוֹן (tsafon). Some see here a reference to Mount Zaphon of the Ugaritic texts, the mountain that Baal made his home. The Hebrew writers often equate and contrast Mount Zion with this proud mountain of the north. Of course, the word just means north, and so in addition to any connotations for pagan mythology, it may just represent the northern skies – the stars. Since the parallel line speaks of the earth, that is probably all that was intended in this particular context.

[26:7]  ²⁵ sn There is an allusion to the creation account, for this word is תֹּהוּ (tohu), translated “without form” in Gen 1:2.

[26:7]  ²⁶ sn Buttenwieser suggests that Job had outgrown the idea of the earth on pillars, and was beginning to see it was suspended in space. But in v. 11 he will still refer to the pillars.

[37:22]  ²⁷ tn The MT has “out of the north comes gold.” Left in that sense the line seems irrelevant. The translation “golden splendor” (with RV, RSV, NRSV, NIV) depends upon the context of theophany. Others suggest “golden rays” (Dhorme), the aurora borealis (Graetz, Gray), or some mythological allusion (Pope), such as Baal’s palace. Golden rays or splendor is what is intended, although the reference is not to a natural phenomenon – it is something that would suggest the glory of God.

[37:15]  ²⁸ tn The verb is בְּשׂוּם (bÿsum, from שִׂים [sim, “set”]), so the idea is how God lays [or sets] [a command] for them. The suffix is proleptic, to be clarified in the second colon.

[37:15]  ²⁹ tn Dhorme reads this “and how his stormcloud makes lightning to flash forth?”

[37:16]  ³⁰ tn As indicated by HALOT 618 s.v. מִפְלָשׂ, the concept of “balancing” probably refers to “floating” or “suspension” (cf. NIV’s “how the clouds hang poised” and J. E. Hartley, Job [NICOT], 481-82, n. 2).

[38:36]  ³¹ tn This verse is difficult because of the two words, טֻחוֹת (tukhot, rendered here “heart”) and שֶׂכְוִי (sekhvi, here “mind”). They have been translated a number of ways: “meteor” and “celestial appearance”; the stars “Procyon” and “Sirius”; “inward part” and “mind”; even as birds, “ibis” and “cock.” One expects them to have something to do with nature – clouds and the like. The RSV accordingly took them to mean “meteor” (from a verb “to wander”) and “a celestial appearance.” But these meanings are not well-attested.

[36:27]  ³² tn The verb means “to filter; to refine,” and so a plural subject with the drops of water as the subject will not work. So many read the singular, “he distills.”

[36:27]  ³³ tn This word עֵד (’ed) occurs also in Gen 2:6. The suggestion has been that instead of a mist it represents an underground watercourse that wells up to water the ground.

[37:18]  ³⁴ tn The verb means “to beat out; to flatten,” and the analogy in the next line will use molten metal. From this verb is derived the word for the “firmament” in Gen 1:6-8, that canopy-like pressure area separating water above and water below.

[37:21]  ³⁵ tn The light here must refer to the sun in the skies that had been veiled by the storm. Then, when the winds blew the clouds away, it could not be looked at because it was so dazzling. Elihu’s analogy will be that God is the same – in his glory one cannot look at him or challenge him.

[37:21]  ³⁶ tn The verb has an indefinite subject, and so should be a passive here.

[37:21]  ³⁷ tn Heb “and cleaned them.” The referent is the clouds (v. 18), which has been supplied in the translation for clarity. There is another way of reading this verse: the word translated “bright” means “dark; obscured” in Syriac. In this interpretation the first line would mean that they could not see the sun, because it was darkened by the clouds, but then the wind came and blew the clouds away. Dhorme, Gray, and several others take it this way, as does the NAB.

[38:8]  ³⁸ tn The MT has “and he shut up.” The Vulgate has “Who?” and so many commentaries and editions adopt this reading, if not from the Vulgate, then from the sense of the sequence in the text itself.

[38:8]  ³⁹ tn The line uses two expressions, first the temporal clause with גִּיחַ (giakh, “when it burst forth”) and then the finite verb יֵצֵא (yetse’, “go out”) to mark the concomitance of the two actions.

[37:12]  ⁴⁰ tn The words “the clouds” are supplied from v. 11; the sentence itself actually starts: “and it goes round,” referring to the cloud.

[37:12]  ⁴¹ tn Heb “that it may do.”